1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to binoculars.
2. Description of the Related Art
A variety of binoculars having an image stabilization function have been proposed. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-333200, assigned to the same assignee of this invention, discloses binoculars having a lock member that is interlocked with an image stabilizer, an urging member, etc.
In the above binoculars, the lock member that locks the operation of the image stabilizer is interlocked with a control member by way of a plate spring, and the control member is pressed by a finger to unlock the image stabilizer. The control member needs to be modestly pressed against the urging of the spring. While the image stabilizer remains operative, the finger needs to continuously press the control member. Observing an image for a long period of time while the image stabilizer operates is inconvenient, and there is room for improvement in this respect.
It is an object of the present invention to provide binoculars which present ease of use of a control member for activating an image stabilizer while providing comfort in the observation of images using an image stabilizer for a long period of time.
Binoculars of the present invention includes a pair of objective optical units, a pair of eyepiece lens units for observing an image formed by the pair of the objective optical units, a pair of corrective optical units, respectively arranged in optical paths of the pair of the objective optical units, for correcting image blurring by changing the optical paths, a lock member that is shifted between a locked position in which an operation for changing the optical path of each of the corrective optical units is locked and an unlocked position in which the operation for changing the optical path is unlocked, a driver for driving the lock member to one of the locked position and the unlocked position, and a control member for activating the drive operation by the driver.
Preferably, the driver includes a motor and a cam linked to the motor, and the position of the lock member is changed in response to the rotation of the cam.
Preferably, the control member is a control switch for producing a control signal, and drives the driver in response to the control signal when the control switch is operated.
Preferably, the control member is a control switch for producing a control signal, and comprises a controller which releases the lock member from the locked position in response to the control signal when the lock member is in the locked position, and starts a corrective operation by the pair of the corrective optical units.
It is also preferred that the control member is a control switch for producing a control signal, and comprises a controller which stops the corrective operation by the pair of the corrective optical units in response to the control signal when the lock member is in the unlocked position and drives the driver to put the lock member into the locked position.